Employment Law Overview
Having and holding a job is one of the most basic rights of the American citizen. Many people take great pride in their jobs and work hard at them to ensure that they can support their families.
Because employment is so vital to keeping individuals and families afloat, there are state and federal laws that help to protect workers and their jobs. Though most employers are honest, there are situations in which an employer may act dishonestly or fire or treat an employee unfairly. California state law does not tolerate this behavior, and there are legal ways that you can take action to save your job and protect your family.
What Is Employment Law?
Employment law is a relatively broad area of law and deals with many different aspects of employment. Some subsections of employment law include:
- Wrongful termination
- Discrimination
- Retaliation
- Sexual Harassment
- Wage or Hour Disputes
These areas all deal with different ways in which an employer may victimize their employees and strip them of wages, dignity, or a job altogether. As a fierce protector of workers’ rights, we believe that no worker in California should have to deal with any of the above issues. If you have experienced these unfortunate and illegal activities at work, call our firm. We will do everything in my power to ensure that you receive compensation and the incident does not permanently affect you and your family.
Wrongful Termination
Wrongful termination involves the firing or termination of an employee for reasons that are illegal.
Examples of illegal termination may include termination on the basis of gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, disability, age, pregnancy, and other protected classes or in retaliation for blowing the whistle or engaging in a protected activity. According to the law, none of the above criteria may be the root cause for firing an employee.
Discrimination based on these criteria is harmful to the workplace and our communities as a whole and is not tolerated in the eyes of the law in Pasadena. If you would like to learn more about wrongful termination and how you can fight back, visit our in-depth information page about wrongful termination.
Discrimination
Discrimination is a bit more general than wrongful termination but deals with the same categories.
While wrongful termination deals with being fired from a job based on certain protected criteria, discrimination deals with being treated differently at work based on those same criteria. To reiterate, these criteria include but are not limited to:
- Race
- Gender and gender expression
- Sexual orientation
- Religion
- Age
- Disability
- Pregnancy status
Discrimination can occur in many different ways and may include activities such as receiving lower pay for the same work, being looked over for promotions you are qualified for, being left out of meetings or decisions, not being given reasonable accommodation, and more. We believe no one should tolerate this kind of behavior from employers and so work diligently to ensure that you are protected if this kind of unlawful action is taken against you. If you would like to learn more about discrimination and how you can take action against this behavior in the workplace, visit our discrimination page.
Retaliation
California laws protect workers in many ways, including protecting them if they take steps to uphold the law in their workplace.
Retaliation occurs when an employee is treated unfairly for speaking out against illegal or unsafe activities that are happening at work. As an employee, you have the right to speak out for your safety and the safety of others. If your workplace is violating safety laws or procedures, or if discrimination, harassment, or other illegal activity is occurring, you have the right to report it or discuss it with your employer.
Your employer, in turn, cannot treat you differently because you have asked them to uphold basic legal and safety measures. If you would like to learn more about retaliation, visit our in-depth page about retaliation in the workplace.
Sexual Harassment
Employees have the right to feel safe at work. Sexual harassment can easily make a workplace feel volatile, emotional, and unsafe to work in.
Sexual harassment comes in many forms, including physical, verbal, and digital. No matter what the situation looks like, it is important to remember that no form of sexual harassment is tolerated by California Law.
If you have been sexually harassed at work, it is important to take action to ensure that the behavior stops and that you and other employees are protected from further torment. To learn more about sexual harassment cases and what you can do, visit our sexual harassment page.
Wage or Hour Disputes
Even if you thoroughly enjoy your work, the base purpose of a job is to earn money.
If an employer is not paying you in accordance with your contract, is stealing wages or tips, is failing to pay overtime or deducting vacation time, or is performing other illegal activities that reduce your pay, they need to be held legally responsible for their actions.
No employee should be taken advantage of in this way, and wage or hour disputes are a significant way in which employers victimize their workers. If you would like to learn more about wage and hour disputes and what you can do about them, visit our wage or hour disputes page.
